Reviews

3/4 of a bottle of rose in a can for this price? Are you bonkers? Nope! It's the latest thing- get on the bus! 3 glasses in this can make it the perfect thing to bring along to share with a friend on a picnic, hike, at the beach or the pool. Or, splash out and take one down yourself! Pretty strawberry, peach and watermelon with vibrant acidity and total drinkability. It's summer- enjoy it! But watch out- the staff might buy it all first!

Here's what I love about Miguel Merino- his wines are so incredibly balanced, well-crafted and drinkable, it's crazy that we can offer them at such outstanding prices. This 2008 "Vitola" is in a lovely spot- the wood is well-integrated, and the acidity vibrant and pleasing. Plush, ripe red cherry, Santa Rosa plum, hints of savory leather, and that signature Rioja minerality with fine, integrated tannin and medium plus acidity. Stock up for summer BBQs and in preparation for holiday entertaining! A Top Value for sure!

Aaaaand the Tongue in Groove Riesling brings it again! Seriously fabulous Riesling, most excellently crafted. Apricot, peach, and citrus with classic mandarin orange marmalade botrytis notes with a delicious sweetness that is perfectly balanced with the acidity. Stock up- last year the staff bought 90% of the stock!

I have been begging Ryan Woodhouse to bring this wine in for the last two years. And now- it's finally here! If you love easy drinking, aromatic yet very elegant white wine for spring or summer, this is the wine for you! A gorgeous blend of Gewurztraminer, Riesling and Pinot Gris, this wine shows lemony citrus, honeysuckle, plump apricot and white peach, with lively acidity and fabulously balanced sweetness to acid that leave the wine feeling fresh and bright instead of cloying and dense. An incredible value and a must for easy summertime entertaining!

Michel Loriot and his daughter & co-winemaker Marie have created a very special cuvee here. The Marie Leopold Sec (named so after Michel's daughter Marie and their great-great-great grandfather Leopold) has the tiniest dance of sweetness, with beautiful lemon zest, fresh apricot and flaky pie crust notes, with a chalky minerality and vibrant acidity that keep the sweetness from being heavy or dense. If you enjoy Prosecco, but are looking for something different and truly more elegant, try this pretty little cuvee. It's an homage to the Loriot family's history!

It's here, it's here, it's finally here! The Underwood Rosé I've been waiting for since last June! Plush strawberry, unexpected peach, citrus, and red cherry with nice acidity and balance. Half a bottle for $5.99 in an easily portable, light can? SIGN ME UP! Head out to the beach, the park, a picnic, the pool, or a BBQ with cold cans and you will be the toast of the party! LOVE THIS!

Strawberry, red currant, watermelon, nice acidity- juicy and easy. I served this to my family for our Easter dinner this year, and it was perfect with roasted ham, scalloped potatoes and green beans! An interesting blend of Sangiovese, Barbera and Dolcetto. A blend by Chrystal Clifton to raise awareness of breast cancer.

Well hellooooooo summer! Man, I seriously love Txakoli. This Txakoli rose has cemented itself as my spring and summer sipper. Perfectly approachable with strawberry, red cherry, and cranberry but there is also the wonderful chalky, sightly funky earthy note of the classic Txakoli grapes, too- in a totally delicious way! Just a teeny bit fizzy, with mouth-watering acidity- perfect for priming the palate for dinner!

This wine gets better every time I taste it. Beautifully elegant, red rose & red cherry, sandalwood, cassis, currant, mineral and hints of earthiness. Lively acidity and soft, easy tannin. A total no-brainer to stock up on as we start a warm spring!

Super crunchy cranberry, red cherry, tart red currant and sandalwood, with an undercurrent of minerality. Definitely medium plus acidity, and easy tannin, so a perfect match with food- I enjoyed this alongside my roasted chicken with herbed goat cheese. Interested in experiencing what Pinot Noir is like from the Sancerre region? This friendly, fun wine is the perfect place to start!

I've got a new favorite barrel aged gin, and its name is Venus Batch 2! Sean Venus hits it out of the park with each bottling of his carefully crafted, local Santa Cruz spirits. Not just another bottling of the same darn gin just thrown into a barrel, Venus actually created this spirit independent of his Batch 1 gin. Batch 2 winks at you from the shelf with a bright amber sparkle, with dried orange peel, nutmeg, star anise and gingerbread teasing you to make yourself a Negroni, for goodness sake! This puppy will be a mainstay on my bar from today forward!

This year is the first year that I have played around with the Old Tom sweeter style of gin, and the Anchor Old Tom now has a permanent position on my home bar shelf. Slightly sweet, with notes of lemon and orange zest, and spicy juniper, this gin is absolutely fabulous mixed with blood orange juice and a bit of soda water! Or, try it with grapefruit juice! Such a fun and festive gin for springtime!

Jake and Scot Bilbro have re-launched their father's historic winery into the future. The Marietta Old Vine Red is still an amazing value and really, really good stuff. I love that they are carrying on the tradition of deliciously drinkable, affordable, well-made juice with this wine. Always a blend of old vine Zinfandel (and a few other reds they won't tell you!). Blackberry, black currant, cassis, and spice with medium plus acidity and medium tannin. Throwing a BBQ? Hosting a graduation party? Having a wedding reception? Kicking off the summer with a block party? This is one wine that needs to be on your list!

My friend Derek, the winemaker at Patton Valley, has made us such a fun rose to kick off the rose season! All Pinot Noir, this puppy is brimming with cranberry, red cherry, strawberry and red currant with zesty, fresh acidity. Pull up a chair on a sunny patio, pour a glass of this delightful rose, and let your cares fall away! But you better hurry- I might just buy it all first!

The Akitu 1 Pinot Noir Black Label is a stunning, undeniably elegant wine. With clonal material from DRC in Burgundy, it shows all of the grace and poise of its genetic roots, with the vibrancy and purity of fruit I love about Central Otago Pinot Noir. Black currant, plum, red cherry, sandalwood, spice, red roses, and mineral, with medium plus acidity and medium tannin. Described by the winemaker as "The Chanel Suit" of his two Pinots (the Akitu 2 is his flashier "Dolce & Gabbana"), like classic Chanel, this wine is stunning now, and no doubt will continue to age with understated elegance. Buy as much as you can.

Every time I try a new vintage of this wine, I am reminded of how ridiculous this is for the price! The gorgeous Sangiovese stands out in this blend, with red cherry and sandalwood, the Merlot lends a little plummy fleshiness and the 10% Ciliegiolo a bit of mineral and delight. Seriously too good not to tuck away a few cases for your house wine! Fabulous with pizza, burgers, roasted chicken, antipasto--Salute!

This wine amazes me every vintage for its balance, deliciousness, and price performance. Grapefruit and mineral with bright, refreshing, zesty acidity. A must for your daily-drinker white category! Buy by the case--this budget-friendly wine will take you easily from January through summertime, delighting your friends and family with its accessibility--and quaffability!

What a tremendously interesting white! Citrus, tart green apple, leesy richness, and a saline character that is a result of the volcanic soils in which the grapes are grown. Medium-plus quite zesty acidity. The length of this wine is significant--about 10 minutes after tasting, it was still lingering on my palate. A fabulous value--I am excited to give this a go with a cheese platter, roasted chicken or scallops!

Our friends at Zudugarai Amats bring it again! Zippy freshness with a hint of fizz and low alcohol- delish! Lime zest, mineral, green pear with a lively acidity that makes me reach for the bottle to pour another glass. It's time to kick off your shoes, break out the aged Manchego, olives and Marcona almonds, grab a glass, and hit the patio- it's Txak-O'Clock somewhere!

Every time I taste this Champagne, I want to sit and linger with it for the rest of the afternoon. It's a totally nerdy rose, unlike anything else we have. Barrel fermented, all Pinot Meunier and aged in bottle for a year, this particular bottling is all from 2006 fruit. Red cherry, spice, vanilla, leather, funky earth with medium plus acidity and a long finish. What a fabulous, fun rose Champagne!

Man, I love this wine. I had this again the other evening with pank-crusted salmon and a spinach salad, and it was light, pretty and delicious. Soft raspberry, strawberry and citrus with the tiniest hint of sweetness. The acidity really worked with my salmon's fattiness. Of course, the wine's pink sparkly glimmer on the dinner table in my wine glasses added to the ambiance. Stock up for birthday celebrations, brunch, baby showers, or just because it's a Tuesday night!

Love bright, fresh, affordable Vinho Verde? This is simply delish! Super low alcohol at 9%, this vinho verde is slightly fizzy, with notes of apple, pear and lime zest with fresh minerality and lots of zip. Stock up- this one has been flying out of the store in the hands of every staff member! (Including me!)

Every time I try this wine, I wonder why I don't drink more of it! Apple, toast and mineral make this champagne from our friends at Fleury perfectly balanced and well-suited to food. Grown organically and biodynamically, the care that is taken with each bottle will shine through. Perfect gift or party bubbly for the holidays!

This is a gorgeous wine! Moving gracefully into its secondary characteristics, with stewed cherry, hints of leather and earth. Still had medium plus acid and fine tannins, leading me to believe this puppy will continue to age well for at least another 5-10 years. Drink it now after decanting, and you will not be diasppointed!

By far the darkest rose champagne I have ever seen, the color of this incredible Fluteau Rose Brut Champagne is the color of a classic Pinot Noir! Rich and fruity, with beautiful bubble structure and a clean finish. There is an element of the earth of a classic Burgundian Pinot Noir in the back ground in this startling champagne. A rose not to be missed.... A fabulous alternative to standard Pinot Noir on your Thanksgiving Day table! Think ahead for your holiday celebrations & stock up- this is unusual & incredible!

What a screaming deal at $11.99! This bubbly from the Loire Valley will delight you with its refreshingly pleasant acidity, fine bubble structure, and hints of pear, apple and minerals. Chenin Blanc, Chardonnay & Cabernet Franc. When I first brought this wine home, I admittedly had intended to just mix it with my Mathilde Cassis for a Kir Royale, but I wanted to give the wine its proper due and poured a glass out straight first. A wonderful surprise met me, and I never did add that cassis.... the wine somehow disappeared too quickly! Perfect for holiday entertaining!

I had the pleasure of tasting this elegant sparkling wine with the winemaker from New Zealand, who stopped by our store recently. Having just stepped off the plane not 24 hours prior, he was still enthusiastic about presenting us this wine! Pinot Noir dominates the blend with Chardonnay, with a sweet apple and pear, a lovely leesy toastiness, hints of mineral and zippy acid in the finish. This wine is biodynamic, hand picked, and done in the traditional method- and it is HAND riddled to boot! Not many sparkling wines left in the world today can claim that! The care taken with this wine is clear- and the price makes it a steal!

Oooooh if you love Lillet Blanc but want something a little sweeter as an aperitif, try the Cocchi Americano! Mandarin orange, lemon, hints of white flowers with a sweet finish.... delicious on the rocks on a hot afternoon!

A teeny-tiny version of the Aspasie classic Carte Blanche? Get me a picnic basket or a seat by the fire! I'm in! A miniature version of the well-balanced, delicious champagne that we sell by the, well, boatload as it were. Get it now- this is all that is left!

Fans of fresh grated ginger rejoice! This is the stuff for you! No cloying stickiness here, just lots of spice and real ginger heat. Made with 20 year old Glenrothes, and macerated with real fresh ginger root- just add soda!

Having read Melissa and David's reviews of this gin, I was excited but rather dubious in approaching it- how could it be so expressive of the terrior of Northern California? I poured it over ice, added some Fevertree Tonic water and a splash of lime and BAM! Hands down the most incredible experience of drinking in the landscape I love so much! Bay laurel, damp redwood, eucalyptus, wild fennel & dill- this California girl is enraptured!

Drinking St. Germain is like drinking liquid flowers! Subtle, sweet and captivating. Who knew that hand-picked elderflowers from the French Alps could be so lovely? Delicious with Gran Cava champagne with a curly twist of orange, even more amazing with soda on the rocks! I served St. Germain with soda and fresh watermelon juice at a springtime cocktail party, and could hardly keep up with the demand! My absolute favorite spirit for spring and summer!